Northeastern University College of Engineering

Library Webinar: Introduction to Citation Managers
2025-02-03 12:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York)
Learn how to manage your references, organize your research, and quickly create citations and bibliographies using a citation management program. The session will cover: an introduction to EndNote, Refworks, Zotero, and Mendeley; similarities and differences between different citation management programs; how to choose the right citation manager for you; and how to install and use a citation manager.
You will receive the Zoom link for this webinar via email one hour before the event.
This workshop is at 12:00pm Eastern Time.
Registration is required. Register at: bit.ly/citationmgmtworkshops
Related LibGuide: Citations and Bibliographies

CommLab Scientific Oral Communication Practice Drop-In Series
2025-02-03 09:00 - 10:00, 2025-01-27 09:00 - 10:00 (America/New_York) | https://northeastern.zoom.us/meeting/register/Z5yCbd9WQ_OvtJoYqYSsMA
The NU CommLab is hosting a weekly virtual Scientific Oral Communication Drop-in practice for graduate students. Drop-in virtually any week to practice for your upcoming oral exams, proposals, thesis, dissertation or talks. Receive and implement feedback on your verbal and non-verbal public speaking skills. Register through Zoom.

Poster Perfection: A Step-by-Step Guide to Showcasing Your Research and Projects Successfully
2025-01-30 14:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York)
This webinar will provide practical guidance on creating high-quality posters appropriate to your poster audience. Poster presenting events are an accessible and easy way to start sharing your research and projects. Topics in this webinar include using design software, adhering to poster guidelines, and incorporating professional polish to stand out in any poster event. Join us on Zoom to prepare for the COE PhD Research Expo on January 24, the Master’s and Professional Doctorate Impact Symposium on January 26, or RISE on April 10!

LinkedIn, CV, Resume: CommLab Drop-In Workshops
2025-01-30 12:00 - 13:00, 2025-01-23 12:00 - 13:00, 2025-01-16 12:00 - 13:00, 2025-01-09 12:00 - 13:00, 2024-12-19 12:00 - 13:00, 2024-12-12 12:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York)
Join the CommLab’s empowering LinkedIn, CV, and Resume Drop-In Workshops any Thursday from 12 pm to 1 pm ET. This collaborative space offers valuable advice and peer feedback to enhance your online profile and professional presence. Join this workshop series through Zoom.

Chemical Engineering Spring Seminar Series: Sara H. Rouhanifard
2025-01-29 12:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York)
Developing tools for single-molecule sequencing and imaging of RNA modifications
Location: 135 Shillman Hall
Abstract: Despite every cell in the human body having the same genetic makeup, gene expression varies greatly between them. The process of DNA transcription into RNA, along with subsequent post-transcriptional modifications, is crucial for achieving this variability and enabling cell specialization. To manage and potentially correct abnormal gene expression, it’s essential to understand these complex regulatory steps. This understanding relies on developing advanced tools for single-molecule identification, quantification and imaging of RNAs.
In this talk, I will detail our efforts to identify newly modified mRNAs in human cells using direct, long-read sequencing technologies. We are leveraging this technology to explore how RNA modifications impact the physiological functions of developing neurons and immune cells from the human body. By visualizing RNA populations within cells, we can gain insights into their functions and mechanisms—localization often suggests function, while single-cell distribution can reveal underlying mechanisms.
I will also discuss our work on developing methods for site specific imaging of modified and newly transcribed RNAs, including new chemistry designed for live-cell imaging with single-molecule resolution. These innovations promise to deepen our understanding of gene regulation and pave the way for new therapeutic approaches, such as vaccines for infectious disease and advanced gene therapies.

Prof. Rouhanifard received her B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from UMass Amherst in 2007. She then completed a Ph.D. in Biochemistry at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine under the supervision of Peng Wu, developing chemical tools to probe glycosylation in cells using biorthogonal chemistry. She then joined the laboratory of Arjun Raj Bioengineering department at the University of Pennsylvania as a postdoctoral associate and a NIH Ruth S. Kirschstein F32 National Research Service Award fellow, where she developed single-molecule approaches to image RNA in cells. She joined the Northeastern Bioengineering department as an assistant professor in 2019. Her primary research interests lie in understanding the epitranscriptome and related mechanisms that govern cellular differentiation and response to external stimuli. The Rouhanifard laboratory develops quantitative, single-molecule sequencing and imaging approaches using new chemistry to identify and perturb sites of RNA modifications to reveal specific biological functions that may be exploited for the development of future therapeutics.

Graduate Student Virtual Drop-In Proposal Writing Hours
2025-01-28 10:00 - 12:00, 2025-01-21 10:00 - 12:00, 2025-01-14 10:00 - 12:00, 2025-01-07 10:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York)
Graduate students, are you looking for support in writing your dissertation or research proposal? Join the CommLab virtual drop-in writing hours any Tuesday between 10 am -12 pm ET and stay for a short time or the whole two hours. A CommLab Fellow will be available to help you set writing goals and provide feedback on your writing. We will be meeting weekly on Zoom.

Graduate Student Drop-In Writing Hours
2025-01-28 09:00 - 11:00 (America/New_York)
Graduate students, are you looking for a place for focused research writing time? Join the CommLab drop-in writing hours any Tuesday between 9 -11 am ET. Drop in any Tuesday and stay for a short time or two hours. A CommLab Fellow will also be available to provide feedback on your writing. We will be meeting in weekly in 334 Curry Student Center.

Dr. King and Labor
2025-01-22 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York)
Connecting Past and Present
Join the Centers of Excellence for a robust panel discussion about Dr. King and his connection to the labor movement, and about current labor movements.
We will view clips from the documentary By the River I Stand about Dr. King’s involvement in the organizing campaign for sanitation workers before his death.
Additionally, we will discuss the convergence and divergence of stakeholders’ overlapping and competing interests and the legal realities incumbent in the organizing process.
Location: 220 Dockser Hall or Virtual (receive a confirmation email with a url upon registering)

Neurodiversity Initiative Paint Night
2025-01-21 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | 039 SL, 360 Huntington Ave, 039 SL, Boston, MA, 02115, United States
Happy New Year from the Neurodiversity Initiative! It’s time to kick off the semester with another event from the Neurodiversity Initiative, we will be hosting a paint night on Tuesday, January 21st, SL039 in Snell Library at 6:00pm.
Feel free to join us as we build community, paint, and have pizza!
Register for Pathfinders Paint Night

Gordon Institute Virtual Information Session
2025-01-15 17:30 - 18:30, 2024-12-11 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York)
Learn how you can earn a Graduate Certificate in Engineering Leadership as a stand-alone certificate or in combination with one of twenty-three Master of Science degrees offered through Northeastern’s College of Engineering, College of Science, or Khoury College of Computer Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering recognized The Gordon Institute of Engineering Leadership (GIEL) for its innovative curriculum, which combines technical education, leadership capabilities, and the “Challenge Project”—an opportunity for students to receive master’ s-level credit while working in industry.
By aligning technical proficiency with leadership capabilities, GIEL accelerates the development of high-potential engineers and prepares them to lead complex projects early in their careers. Upon completing the program, more than 88% of the 2022 class reported increased leadership responsibility, while more than 50% of the 2022 class reported being promoted within one year of graduation.
Our Director of Admissions will answer your application questions for Fall 2025.
You will have the opportunity to hear from alumni about how The Gordon Institute propelled their engineering careers. Program professors will also be present to answer curriculum questions.

ChE PhD Dissertation Defense: Chao Xu
2025-01-15 12:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | 610-A EXP, 360 Huntington Ave, 610-A EXP, Boston, MA, 02115, United States
Name:
Chao Xu
Title:
Towards Automated Heterogeneous Catalysis Design: Integrating Activation Energy Estimation, Uncertainty Quantification, and Coverage-dependent Thermodynamics in Microkinetic Modeling
Date:
1/15/2025
Time:
12:00:00 PM
Committee Members:
Prof. Richard West (Advisor)
Prof. Qing Zhao
Dr. Franklin Goldsmith
Dr. Zack Ulissi
Location:
EXP 610-A
Abstract:
In the context of climate change, reducing CO2 emission and advancing sustainable development are global priorities. Developing efficient “green” fuel processes requires overcoming the low productivity of industrial catalysts, necessitating new catalyst designs. Traditional trial-and-error approaches are costly and time-intensive, but multi-scale modeling provides a low-cost, efficient alternative by exploring catalyst design across atomic to reactor scales.
This dissertation enhances scientific software such as Reaction Mechanism Generator (RMG) and Cantera etc. for automating heterogeneous catalysis modeling to accelerate catalyst design. An active-learning workflow for calculating coverage-dependent thermodynamics with EquiformerV2, a graph neural network, was developed, complementing the existing RMG coverage-dependent kinetics functionality. The estimated coverage-dependent thermodynamics were validated through a CO/H2 methanation model on Ni. Because reaction activation energies are also affected by species’ coverage, the dissertation also addresses rapid reaction barrier estimation by implementing the Blowers-Masel Approximation (BMA), which relates a reaction barrier to enthalpy using minimal data. Integrated into Cantera, this method supports catalyst screening with linear scaling relationships (LSRs) and BMA kinetics. A methane partial oxidation study on 81 hypothetical metals demonstrated how BMA affects rate-limiting species and high-selectivity catalysts, while sensitive reactions remain unaffected.
Lastly, thermodynamic properties of surface species in catalytic methane partial oxidation models on Rh were estimated using DFT, LSRs, and a graph neural network named GEMNET, combined with Bayesian parameter estimation for process optimization. The three methods provided close thermodynamic data with different prior uncertainties, validating the feasibility of combining machine learning potentials with RMG for thermodynamic estimation on all kinds of binding facets. Bayesian parameter estimation improved simulation accuracy of the three estimation methods while uncovering active site information inaccessible through conventional means. The workflow effectively integrates experimental and computational uncertainties, enabling data-informed catalyst design and optimization.

Elderly Action Recognition Challenge at WACV2025
2025-01-09 19:00 - 2025-02-15 19:00 (America/New_York)
Are you ready to make a real-world impact with your AI models? The EAR Challenge, part of the prestigious Computer Vision for Smalls Workshop at WACV 2025, is now open for registration!
💡 Why Join?
This challenge is more than just a competition; it’s a mission to advance the recognition of the Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) for the elderly. Your innovations can improve safety and enhance quality of life, paving the way for groundbreaking advancements in computer vision.
🎯 Your Objective:
Start with a general human action recognition benchmark and fine-tune your models on a specialized dataset of elderly-specific activities using transfer learning. Show us your robust, adaptable, and scalable solutions in real-world scenarios!
📅 Important Dates:

Submission Deadline: February 15, 2025

🔗 Register Now and learn more
#️⃣ Discord Channel
🛠️ Workshop Page
👥 Who Can Participate?
Everyone is welcome, whether you’re from academia, industry, or a student passionate about advancing AI for the societal good.
Proudly sponsored by Voxel51, this is your chance to innovate, collaborate, and make a difference. Let’s come together to improve elderly care with cutting-edge AI solutions!

Cookies with the Dean of Engineering & First Year Engineering and Innovation Center Open House
2025-01-08 14:30 - 16:00 (America/New_York) | 368 SN, 360 Huntington Ave, 368 SN, Boston, MA, 02115, United States
*Intended only for COE undergrad students joining the Boston campus for the first time in Spring 2025.
Meet Dean Abowd and tour the First Year Engineering and Innovation Center (FYELIC) to discover tools, meeting spaces, & resources you can use, like laser cutting & 3D printing. Engage with the First-Year Engineering Faculty and our friendly student workers while enjoying cookies with your peers!

Virtual Monthly Coffee Hour with Neha!
2025-01-03 18:00 - 19:00, 2024-12-20 18:00 - 19:00 (Asia/Kolkata)
Join us for a coffee hour as Neha, College of Engineering enrollment coach in India, hosts a virtual webinar where you’ll:

Learn about our programs and co-op opportunities within the College of Engineering.
Explore the various campuses and impressive resources.
Learn about internal and external scholarships that you may qualify for.
Gain insight into the application process.

Graduate Student Drop-In Writing Hours
2024-12-18 09:00 - 11:00, 2024-12-11 09:00 - 11:00 (America/New_York) | Curry Student Center, 360 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA, 02115, United States
Graduate students, are you looking for a place for focused research writing time? Join the CommLab drop-in writing hours any Wednesday between 9 -11 am ET. Drop in any Wednesday and stay for a short time or two hours. A CommLab Fellow will also be available to provide feedback on your writing. We will be meeting in weekly in 334 Curry Student Center. Note we will meet in 336 Curry Student Center on Wednesday, September 25th.

ChE PhD Dissertation Defense: Yuan Li
2024-12-13 14:00 - 16:00 (America/New_York)
Name:
Yuan Li
Title:
Establishing a Physiologically Relevant Upper Gastrointestinal In Vitro Model Incorporating Bile Salts and Simplified Commensal Microbial Consortium
Date:
12/13/2024
Time:
2:00:00 PM
Committee Members:
Prof. Rebecca Carrier (Advisor)
Prof. Abigail Koppes
Prof. Erel Levine
Prof. Jiahe Li
Location:
EXP 610-A
Abstract:
Bacteria-epithelial-immune crosstalk plays crucial roles in intestinal physiology. Bile salts (BS) act as critical modulators of these interactions, influencing health and disease. Tools for studying interactions between BS, microbes, and host cells within the human intestinal mucosa are lacking.
In this project, we developed in vitro intestinal models for studying bacteria-epithelial-immune crosstalk. First, the impacts of individual BS (sodium taurocholate, NaTC; sodium glycochenodeoxycholate, NaGCDC; and sodium tauroursodeoxycholate, NaTUDC) on human primary intestinal epithelial monolayer co-cultures with Escherichia coli were studied. We observed that high BS concentrations disrupted barrier function, as evidenced by reduced transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER), with NaGCDC causing the most significant damage. Interestingly, the addition of phyosphatidylcholine (PC) and E. coli were observed to mitigate the BS-induced monolayer TEER reductions.
To enhance the model’s physiological relevance, we next incorporated a simplified model bile (including NaTC, NaGCDC, NaTUDC, and PC), an apical hypoxic environment, dendritic cells, and a simplified commensal microbial consortium (Streptococcus mitis, Clostridium bifermentans, Prevotella melaninogenica, and Bifidobacterium longum). 4/1 mM concentrations of BS/PC micelles were observed to damage the epithelial barrier under hypoxic but not normoxic conditions. However, incorporation of the bacterial consortium protected the epithelium from BS/PC – associated damage. Furthermore, the presence of BS/PC alleviated barrier damage and inflammatory response induced by co-culture with the bacterial consortium, potentially in part through modulation of bacterial growth. In addition, we observed thicker mucus layers not only impacted the growth of consortium strains, resulting in enhanced growth of the probiotic Bifidobacterium longum, but also reduced inflammatory responses to bacteria and BS/PC-induced epithelial damage. In general, our in vitro model revealed that commensal microbes mitigate BS and BS/PC toxicity to the epithelial monolayer, while BS helps alleviate monolayer damage and inflammatory response caused by commensal microbes.
In preparation for transferring the developed model from static cell culture inserts to microfluidic devices for mimicking intestinal fluidic stimuli and enabling facile visualization of the mucosal interface, we designed a gut-on-chip platform with a vertical hydrogel-cultured epithelial monolayer. Three hydrogels (crosslinked collagen type I, PEG-VS, and PEG-SG-PLL) were evaluated for compatibility with human primary intestinal epithelial stem cells (HPIESCs). Collagen type I and PEG-SG-PLL were found to support HPIESC adhesion and monolayer formation, but collagen lost structural integrity under flow. PEG-VS, though functionalized with cell-binding peptides, only enabled partial monolayer formation. Notably, encapsulating organoids in PEG-VS near the gel-medium interface enabled crypt-like monolayer formation through organoid-driven gel re-structuring. Furthermore, we found that flow enhanced epithelial differentiation on PEG-SG-PLL and PEG-VS (encapsulation method), leading to thicker monolayers with taller columnar cells compared to static culture. These findings show PEG-SG-PLL and PEG-VS are good candidates for enabling transition of the bile-intestinal model to microfluidic chip platforms.

ChE PhD Dissertation Defense: Peng Zhao
2024-12-10 14:00 - 16:00 (America/New_York)
Name:
Peng Zhao
Title:
Impact of ECM-Based Hydrogel Delivery Vehicle Properties on Cell Survival in a 3D In Vitro Injection Model for Retinal Progenitor Cell Transplantation
Date:
12/10/2024
Time:
2:00:00 PM
Committee Members:
Prof. Rebecca Carrier (Advisor)
Prof. Abigail Koppes
Prof. Sidi Bencherif
Prof. Michael Young
Location:
EXP 610-A
Abstract:
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of vision loss globally and a form of retinal degenerative (RD) disease. Current treatments, such as gene therapy, drugs, laser procedures, and neuroprotective approaches, cannot restore the photoreceptors lost in RD diseases. Cell transplantation into the subretinal space shows potential to enhance visual function, but low cell survival and efflux from the injection site present major obstacles. Mechanical forces during injection can severely damage cells, and the host microenvironment may further contribute to cell death. Following high-density subretinal injection, a compact cell bolus may form, resulting in nutrient depletion, low oxygen levels, pH imbalances, and waste accumulation—factors that exacerbate cell death.
Biomaterial scaffolds have been employed to improve cell survival and differentiation, though the ideal scaffold cues for supporting transplanted cell survival and integration remain undetermined. In this study, we developed a three-dimensional (3D) in vitro injection model to simulate subretinal bolus injection. Using this model, we found that the injection process and bolus microenvironment negatively impact human retinal progenitor cell (hRPC) viability, promoting apoptosis. Alginate-based hydrogels of varying stiffness and extracellular matrix (ECM) molecule compositions were created using factorial design. hRPC viability, apoptosis, and migration within the formed hydrogels were investigated through the 3D in vitro injection model and a 3D invasion assay. Factorial design analysis revealed that higher stiffness and the inclusion of laminin and hyaluronic acid enhance hRPC survival and 3D migration.
One challenge with studying cell responses in the context of cell transplantation is the inability to easily visualize cells at the transplantation site over time. Compared to traditional in vitro cultures, retinal explant models that retain native tissue structure and neuronal connections could provide physiologically relevant insights. Here, we developed a novel explant model for hRPC transplantation, wherein alginate-based hydrogels containing hRPCs were injected adjacent to cross-sectional retinal tissue slices. This setup allows visualization of the cells’ position relative to retinal tissue layers over time. Key cell behaviors, including migration, attachment, invasion, viability, and apoptosis, were tracked in real-time using confocal microscopy.

MLOps Innovation Expo
2024-12-09 10:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | Curry Student Center, 360 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA, 02115, United States
Please join us for the inaugural MLOps Innovation Expo, a showcase of groundbreaking work in AI and machine learning by our talented students.

📅 Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
⏰ Time: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
📍 Location: Curry Student Center Ballroom

This dynamic event is your chance to witness cutting-edge AI innovations, connect with brilliant minds, and contribute to shaping the future of machine learning.

Event Highlights

Project Showcase: Experience end-to-end AI solutions tackling real-world challenges.
Networking Opportunities: Build connections with students and colleagues.
Competition: Cast your vote and help select the top projects through a blend of audience and faculty voting.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to celebrate the talent and creativity within our MIE community.
We hope to see you there!
